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Cookies...ahhh cookies. As I type this, we are two and a half months into Covid-19 Lockdown...and my husband and I have made and tested a tonne of cookies. Currently as it stands we have a freezer drawer half full of loads of different cookies...white, milk, dark chocolate, caramelised chocolate, smarties...sprinkles! The list in endless! This recipe is for a simple chewy cookie. It's a super wet recipe, so it needs refrigerating before being rolled into balls and then popped either back in the fridge, or even better in the freezer (for up to 3 months!). 

Ingredients: 
160g Unsalted butter, slightly softened
125g light brown sugar
125g caster sugar
2 eggs
1tsp vanilla paste/extract
280g self raising flour
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda
250g choc chips (or another filling, cranberry and white choc is good)

So, to start, cream together your butter and sugars for a few minutes, then add your eggs, one at a time, followed by your vanilla. Once combined add your flour, salt and bicarb, and then your choc chips, and mix until all combined. 

Once this is all mixed up, put the bowl with the mixture into the fridge for an hour or so. This is a wet mixture and does need to firm up a little. Once this is done, take them out of the fridge, and roll into balls, approx 50-55g each in weight. Now, if you plan on eating them that day, pop them in the fridge for at least another 30 mins. As you get approx 16 cookies with this recipe you may want to eat a few straight away, and then you can freeze the rest. These cookies will keep perfectly in the freezer for a good three months (although I'm telling you now they will not last that long, but we can all pretend). 

When they are ready to be baked, pop your oven on to warm up at 160c fan (approx 180c non fan oven) and line a baking tray with parchment. Once your oven is warmed up, pop your cookies on the tray (with plenty of space for them to spread) and bake for around 8 minutes (if frozen 10 mins), or until they are ever so slightly golden around the edges. They may not look fully cooked; and that's the point. They are not biscuits, they are cookies, and they should be chewy and mouthwatering, and yummy! 

When they come out of the oven, don't touch them...not for a good ten minutes. WARNING: Those 10 minutes are a slow torture...trust me. This allows them to cool down and upon cooling they will firm up perfectly. Then you can pour yourself a glass of milk and have a moment with your new soulmates!

PS: If you cook too many of these cookies, that's ok. They will still be fine the next day...less gooey, but still chewy and delightful...just make sure that once cooled you store them in an airtight container. 

These pancakes are a firm favourite in our house. The perfect weekend breakfast, or even pudding sometimes! Served with some yogurt, and a really simple fruit compote (which I'll tell you how to make also) this is sure to be a winner in your. house too! You can serve these however you like. I'm not a maple syrup and bacon kind of gal, but hey if that's you, do you thing! 

Ingredients (Pancakes) Makes 6 
135m-150mll Milk
1tbsp vinegar (white wine or malt)
150g plain flour
1.5 tsp bicarbonate of soda
1 large egg
1 tbsp veg oil
2 tbsp golden syrup or honey

So, to start you need to be turning your milk into buttercream. Easy! Just measure out your milk, pour in your vinegar, give it a mix and leave it to do it's thing for a minute or two while you crack on weighing all your ingredients out. 

Measure out your flour and bicarb, and add to a mixing bowl. Add you milk mixture (now buttermilk), your egg, veg and golden syrup or honey and mix until you get a nice thick batter. 

Warm up a non stick frying pan (you do not want to have the heat on high, so warm your pan up on medium heat and then turn it right down). Pop a few spoonfuls of mixture into the pan (it won't spread out too much and that is what you want, we're not making crepes here). You can do this a few times and make a few pancakes depending on the size of your pan and how big you want your pancake (I do two per pan). 

Now do not move that pancake or pan. Watch it carefully. When bubbles start to come to the top of the pancake, it's time to turn them over. I like to use a spatula for this. This doesn't too long, maybe a minute, but you need to watch them as they can overcook pretty quickly! The cooked side should be lightly golden. 

Turn over for about a minute or so until lightly golden, then serve! (I love it with fruit compote and greek yogurt)

Fruit Compote

This is a super simple fruit compote recipe which works perfectly with pancakes, but can be stored in the fridge and used with yogurt or whatever you fancy. This is enough for 2-3 people. 

Ingredients:
200g Fruit (fresh or frozen)
1 tbsp sugar

Using a heavy saucepan, pop in your fruit and sugar, and leave to simmer on a low heat for 5-10 minutes, until your sugar starts to dissolve. If you wish you can break the fruit down with a spoon or fork, or you can leave to have it chunky and saucy, which makes it the perfect accompaniment to your pancakes!

NOTE: If making this compote to have with pancakes make this first, otherwise it will be hotter than the sun!  

This recipe is for the most delicious, light, soft and fluffy banana cake you will ever eat! Simple ingredients, stunning taste!

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